Thirty One
by idiot devil
Summary: Thirty worlds where they meet, and one where they don't


One

They were eighteen when they first kissed.

It wasn't intentional. It was the barest of touches, the meeting of lips when they learned to dance the a particular movement of Swan Lake , hips bouncing against one another as they leaned a bit too close. The dance room was enclosed just like a prison, with thee only exception being the windows that gave it an ethereal quality. A few leaps lead into a pirouette that led to the two girls at the back crashing into one another as they spun, arms and bodies spinning into one another. The instructor didn't even make an expression as she bade to tell them off, noting that crashing into one another wasn't exactly the epitome of gracefulness.

Tomoyo flushed. Her skin was already pale, but the flush infused it with such redness that she looked almost like a tomato. Her tall back was to the floor, and she could see brown curls sticking out of the girl next to her. Tomoyo didn't know her, but she didn't know very many people. It wasn't like she was some sort of devil, but people never really got too close to her, even when she lived in Tokyo and was surrounded by a sea of people everyday.

Maybe it was because of her looks. Maybe it was because she excluded an air of something that resembled royalty. Nevertheless, she had gone to a private school where humility was somewhat looked down upon and arrogance a vice that was deemed necessary. She wasn't like that. Or at least, she thought she wasn't. What one was, and what one thought one was, she mused as she saw the instructor start yelling, were two very different things indeed.

She supposed she should have been angry at that. That she had been denied a chance at normal friendships, at a normal life. Maybe that was why she had left Tokyo as soon as she had graduated, and had jumped at a chance to study photography at some American University that she couldn't really be pronounce but didn't really care to. This was the first time in her life where she wasn't expected to be anyone, so naturally she jumped at the chance and just pushed off all her responsibilities, why shouldn't she?

She already knew why she shouldn't. Her mother. Her mother still wrote to her everyday, talking about how much she missed her and wondering when she would return. If Tomoyo were a more cynical person, her first thought would've been to wonder how much of it was fake, but she knew her mother well enough to know that she genuinely cared for her, but she just didn't understand how to handle her daughter. Or maybe that was her rebellious phase kicking in, Tomoyo wasn't really sure. She never really had one when she was younger since it wasn't allowed. Or, to be more frank, it was but the punishments were so severe that she didn't bother.

She was more practical then that, or so she hoped. But when she saw the girl on her side turn as the instructor finally left, she dimly wondered what the word even meant. "Ah, I'm so sorry...," she might as well have been talking to the wall itself, since Tomoyo was focusing on a grand total of two things. One was the movement of her face when she moved her hand through her hair like some sort of prepubescent boy, the other was those two luminous orbs that served as her eyes.

They were beautiful.

Not in a conventional beautiful, but a way that defied the gods themselves, like she was some sort of goddess that had descended unto Earth in order to take a mortal husband and make lots of half-bloods, or maybe she had been reading too much Percy Jackson, that was probably it. But no, Tomoyo had made up her mind, she was going to photograph those eyes if it was the last thing that she did. Which was probably not a good idea, not to mention impractical, given that they were in the middle of a lesson in the arts of twirling.

"Do you need a hand?" The other girl had recovered her composure somewhat, and she used her hands to push her bangs out of her face. Tomoyo shook her head, and she tried to be as dignified as possible when she got up, but there wasn't really much that she could do. The instructor had already moved on, and the girls around them gave them looks as they made their way back to their spots.

They didn't speak again until the lesson ended and Sakura walked at a snail's pace with the other girls as they went to the change rooms, clearly hoping that Tomoyo would catch up with her. Not sure whether to be pleased or not, Tomoyo hurried her pace too and quickly changed. They found each other quickly, by the virtue that everyone else was Caucasian, and soon they were standing together as they slowly walked to where Tomoyo had parked her car.

"My name's Sakura, I don't know if we've met but...," They were speaking in Japanese, but Sakura stammered anyway. The snow was covering their jackets, and underneath, she shivered. Tokyo had never been this cold, but her laughter at the other girl injected some warmth into her.

Sakura flushed, but didn't seem to mind Tomoyo's laughter, in fact, it was only but a moment that she joined in. "I'm Tomoyo, and I've don't think we've met. I've just recently arrived from Tokyo, so it's good to meet a familiar face, pleased to make your acquaintance." Even if she were halfway across the world, she would never forget her manners. She was too chic for that.

"Tomoyo huh..? That's such a cute name! I'm from Tokyo too, but I don't think I've seen you before." Sakura grabbed something from inside her bag as she said that, whilst Tomoyo did the same.

However, when Tomoyo pulled out something quite heavy, Sakura just held a card in her. Probably some sort of identification card, thought Tomoyo. She ignored it and concentrated, fingers snapping as her eyes lined up the perfect shot. "Wait- what-" Sakura barely had anytime to react before she blinked, the flash nearly blinding her.

As the film began developing, Sakura recognized the device as one of those Polaroids. And not one of the cheap ones either. She had wanted one when she was a kid, wanting to take pictures of the various animals that she had met at a zoo, but her father had told her that they couldn't afford it. He had to feed both of them, her and her older brother Toya, on the wages he earned as a professor at Tokyo University, so they were always somewhat strapped for cash.

"Are you one of those kind of weird people that take pictures of everything they see?" They had nearly reached the car, it was parked somewhere on the outskirts of the studio.

"Of course not! I only take pictures of beautiful things. Things that need to be preserved." When she was talking about her passion, her manners could be forgotten somewhat.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could Sakura shaking her head in disbelief, but even then, she could see a blush on the other girl's face. Skirting past an empty road, the pair finally reached Tomoyo's car, a blue Mini Cooper that blended in perfectly with the other cars.

Tomoyo was just about to press the car keys until she realized she had no idea what she was doing in the first place. They had just met and she was about to bring what was a stranger into her car. Sakura was having likewise thoughts, and the pair glanced at one another, both not knowing what really to say.

They wanted to talk to one another, but didn't want the other one to know that. How to resolve such a situation? They didn't know. Tomoyo never really was that good at this kinda stuff. She was half about to die from the awkwardness and drive off and forget this ever happened and lose her only chance at a new friend and a billion other things until she realized that Sakura was speaking to her.

"I'll buy you coffee if you buy me one!" The other girl had walked up to her, nearly rubbing her hands until Sakura realized what she was doing. Her words hadn't been a lie. She really did want coffee. And she really did want to get Tomoyo better, even if she was going to die of embarrassment from doing it.

After all, it wasn't like she had many friends either. Glancing at the dark haired girl, she could see her staring straight at her, looking straight into her eyes. Black met brown, and Sakura's heart jumped a beat, but she remained standing and the moment passed. A slight smile slowly appeared on Tomoyo's face, "Deal. But throw in another picture for me too."

"That's not fair! I demand equal rights." But she got into the car anyway.

"I'm not a fair person." She pushed the handle brake down and began to drive. Her short stature made it hard for her to press the accelerator, but she did fine. She hoped. On her side, Sakura snorted, but said nothing more as she leaned backwards and closed her eyes.

Looking at the sleeping girl as she drove, Tomoyo smiled to herself and made a course for the nearest coffee shop. Maybe moving hadn't been that bad of an idea after all.


End file.
